Inquiring Minds
by Moonshayde
Summary: Before the briefing, Daniel and Rodney exchange a few words. Missing scene from The Pegasus Project.


_Disclaimer: Stargate, Stargate SG-1 and all of its characters, titles, names, and back-story are the property of MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Productions, SciFi Channel, and Showtime/Viacom. All other characters, the story idea and the story itself are the sole property of the author. This story cannot be printed anywhere without the sole permission of the author. Realize this is for entertainment purposes only; no financial gain or profit has been gained from this fiction. This story is not meant to be an infringement on the rights of the above-mentioned establishments _

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_Daniel flipped through the briefing report, trying to stay focused. But how could he? He was in the middle of Atlantis, surrounded by technology that was a window to the Ancients' past. He wanted to hunt and explore, to immerse himself completely in the city's wonders. 

He turned the next page and sighed.

Daniel couldn't make out some of the higher level physics cited in the report, but his basic understanding of the field was enough. He just hoped this plan worked.

"Stay put," he said, without ever glancing upward.

"But Daniel…" Vala whined.

"They'll be back shortly. Just stay."

Daniel flipped to another page. He was starting to wish he'd never suggested allowing Vala to accompany them. Maybe he could talk to General Landry…

"So," he heard a voice say, nearly startling him enough to make him jump out of his seat. Daniel looked to his left and blinked, finding Rodney McKay slip into the seat to his left.

"So…" Daniel arched his eyebrows.

"What did she say about me?"

Daniel frowned and glanced across the table. "Vala?"

"What?" Rodney asked, shooting a confused look over to Vala. She waved. Rodney stared at her for a few seconds before huffing impatiently at Daniel. "Ah, yes. You are so hilariously funny that I forgot to laugh."

Daniel smiled despite himself.

"Colonel Carter," Rodney said, his voice firm. "She must have missed me to insist that SG-1 come to Atlantis."

Daniel was back to skimming through the briefing report. The fact that all of SG-1 (plus one) had come to Atlantis had nothing to do with how much Sam had missed Rodney.

His ears still hurt after hearing her rant all the way to the Pegasus galaxy.

Rodney did not take well to Daniel's silence. "Oh, come on. You can't seriously expect me to believe that she didn't say anything about me?"

"Oh, she said something," Daniel muttered. "Actually, she said quite a lot."

Just not anything you'd like to hear.

Rodney leaned back in his chair, a self-satisfied smile reaching his lips. "I knew that she would."

As he turned the page, Daniel heard a little chuckle from across the table. He paused long enough to witness Vala grinning at the two of them, twirling her fingers through one of her long locks of hair. Daniel sighed while Rodney frowned.

"What?" Rodney asked.

"Nothing," she said innocently.

"I think it's obviously something," he said.

Daniel remained silent, but he kept his eyes on her, making sure she got his warning. The last thing he needed was for Vala to tattle on Sam and her discussion over Rodney's "manhood" right out into the open.

As usual, Vala threw him a curve ball.

"I just think you're an extremely intelligent man," she said with a wink.

Daniel just rolled his eyes and turned to the next page. In the meantime, he was sure he caught Rodney blush. "Well, yes. Glad someone noticed. I—"

Daniel cleared his throat effectively silencing both of them. Naturally, it didn't have the effect he was really going for.

"Do you think I'm stupid?" Rodney huffed and glared at Daniel. "I think we're both smart enough to be above these kind of games. Just what did Colonel Carter say about me?"

Upon seeing Vala's mouth open, Daniel shook his head and took the initiative, leaning toward Rodney. "Let's just say there's no one else in the universe Sam can talk astrophysics with like the way she does with you."

"Oh." His smug smile returned. Rodney beamed, folding his hands together. "Well, of course not."

Daniel nodded. That was good enough for him. But he didn't know how long he could keep the peace before Rodney started to pick everything apart again. He glanced down at his watch.

"Sorry for the wait," Elizabeth announced as she walked into the room. Colonel Sheppard, Mitchell, and Sam followed in after her.

Daniel offered a small smile to the four of them. He knew that someone had to stay behind with Vala as Elizabeth showed them the security systems on Atlantis. And naturally, it was him by default.

Not like he'd only tried to get here for two years.

Daniel sighed. That was all in the past. Now, he was here. Not under the best of circumstances, but he was here.

And he was going to damn well enjoy it.

Satisfied, Daniel leaned back in his seat, report in hand, and nodded to everyone in the room. Then, he focused on Elizabeth, waiting for her to begin.


End file.
